Why is it especially important to educate young people about FAS?
There are rising numbers of teen pregnancies and teens who use alcohol. Statistics illustrate the problems: According to McDonald’s Corporation, the average age of beginning alcohol use is 12.5. The National Council on Alcoholism has said that nearly 100,000 10- and 11-year olds get drunk at least once a week. The 1985 Statistical Abstract developed by the U.S. Department of Commerce showed there were 239,000 pregnancies of girls between the ages of 14 and 18. Given the estimates of the incidence of FAS and FAE, more than 3,300 babies, born to teenagers, might be affected by FAS or FAE in one year.
